Durham University in conjunction with the Department of Theology and Religion will be hosting the conference ‘A Celebration of Living Theology: Engaging with the work of Andrew Louth’ on 9-12 July 2012 at Durham University. The conference aims to celebrate the work of Prof. Andrew Louth in the areas of Patristics, both Western and Eastern, Modern Theology and Theology as Life, as well as explore its reception outside the English-speaking world.

This is a report on a paper presented by Prof Richard Bauckham, formerly of University St Andrews and fellow of the British Academy, at the New Testament Research Seminar, Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 13th of February 2012. The list of forthcoming papers in the NT Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here.

Prof Bauckham’s paper was written as a companion to his essay on ‘individualism’ in the Gospel of John, which he presented at the British New Testament Conference (Nottingham, 2011). In the present paper, Prof Bauckham offers a fresh interpretation of John’s usage of the ‘oneness’ language (focussing on the word ἕν), and assesses its relevance for understanding the divine and human community. He examines the Scriptural uses of the community language, with a special emphasis on Jesus’ prayer in John 17, and also the developments of this language in systematic theology.

The word ‘one’

According to Prof Bauckham, in 12 instances in 8 Johannine texts, the word ‘one’ becomes a very potent theological term. Although one might be compelled to regard this word as straight-forward, this initial impression is in fact wrong, as it is used by John at least in two different ways.

This is a report on a paper presented by DrWendy Sproston-North, formerly of University of Hull, at the New Testament Research Seminar, Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 16th of January 2012. The list of forthcoming papers in the NT Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here.

In this very appealing presentation, Dr Sproston-North challenged C.H. Dodd’s idea that John 12:1-8 was composed solely based on oral sources and proposed a new hypothesis. This essay is part of a project to be published as a collection of essays revisiting Dodd’s work. The two part structure of the paper covered both Dodd’s hypothesis and the author’s critique, and also provided a verse-by-verse analysis of John 12:1-8.

In his Historical Tradition in the Fourth Gospel, C.H. Dodd argues that John composed his Gospel based on oral tradition and did not rely on the Synoptic authors. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a report on a book preview by Prof Francis Watson, Professor of New Testament Exegesis at Durham University, at the New Testament Research Seminar, Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 12th of December 2011. The list of forthcoming papers in the NT Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here.

The second book preview in the series inaugurated by Prof John Barclay at the beginning of November (2011) here, at Durham University, was the forthcoming monograph by Prof Francis Watson. His approach towards Gospel studies focuses on the reception and interpretation of the canonical texts, without neglecting the non-canonical gospels. In Prof Watson’s words, the phenomenon of reception is almost a universal precondition of the historical knowledge in general. History of the impact that one writing or figure had in history, or Wirkungsgeschichte as Gadamer puts it, is not a uniquely theological concept, but has specific particularities within the Christian context. And reception is not only reconstruction. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a report on a paper presented by Dr Edward Adams, Senior Lecturer in New Testament Studies at King’s College London, at the New Testament Research Seminar, Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 5th of December 2011.

The list of forthcoming papers in the NT Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here. Like us on Facebook, here.

At the last session of the New Testament Research Seminar, Dr Edward Adams presented a very interesting and engaging paper on the identification of the early Christian meeting places. This presentation will be published as a contribution of a monograph on the same topic.

His analysis was focused on the undisputed Pauline epistles and the incidence and meaning of the phrase κατ᾽ οἶκον αὐτῶν ἐκκλησίᾳ (the church in their house). Read the rest of this entry »

This is a report on a paper presented by Prof Lewis Ayres, Lecturer in Greek Patristics and Byzantine Studies in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University, at the NT Research Seminar at the Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 28th of November 2011.

The list of forthcoming papers in the New Testament Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here. You can follow RBECS on Facebook, here.

An extensive written treatment of Prof Ayres’ argument was circulated in advance to the seminar members. His great and very interesting presentation emerged from his existing work on the 4th and 5th century Trinitarian controversies that shaped a certain way of reading Scripture. Prof Ayres’ aim was to identify as much as possible the origins of the classical Patristic exegesis and the significance of the ancient Grammarians in the development of the Patristic interpretative techniques. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a report on a paper presented by Dr Krastu Banev, Lecturer in Greek Patristics and Byzantine Studies in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University, at the Patristics Research Seminar at the Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 24th of November 2011.

The list of forthcoming papers in the Patristics Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here. You can follow RBECS on Facebook, here.

In this very inspiring paper, Dr Banev intended to show the similarities and differences between the idea of religious experience and the numinous employed by John Chrysostom (c. 347–407) and Rudolf Otto (1869–1937).

There is a gap in the scholarly record with regard to the treatment of the idea of ‘numinous dread’ (or the mysterium tremendum et fascinans, as Otto calls it).

This is a report on a book preview by Prof John Barclay, Professor of New Testament Studies at Durham University, at the New Testament Research Seminar, Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 07th of November 2011.

The list of forthcoming papers in the NT Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here.

At the last assembly of the weekly New Testament research seminar, a new type of presentation was inaugurated. Prof Francis Watson, this session’s chair, introduced the format of book previews, a new and different one from the seminars we were used to so far. In these new sessions, the chair will get involved much more as a moderator, in a questions and answers format. For the first half of the session, the moderator will ask a set of questions which will enable the author and respondent to draw the general structure and themes of his book. In the second half, the open discussion, to which all participants are invited, would complete the already composed picture and further focus on the participants’ interests in the previously presented book.

This term’s Academic Development Seminar, organised by the Department of Theology and Religion of Durham University, aimed to answer some of the most important questions relating to conferences and conference presentations. The seminar, which followed a Questions and Answers-type format, was chaired and moderated by Dr Alec Ryrie. The respondents were Prof Francis Watson (Professor of New Testament) and Prof Lewis Ayres (Bede Chair in Catholic Theology).

It was agreed from the beginning that conferences come in many shapes and forms and that preparing and presenting a paper is very important in the academic life of researchers. However, the importance of conferences is generally misinterpreted and misunderstood. First of all, finding a job at conferences should not be the purpose for attending it, however inside knowledge about prospective academic jobs within different universities might be acquired at such meetings. Therefore, there is only an indirect link between attending conferences and getting a job. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a report on a paper presented by Dr Simon Gathercole, Senior Lecturer in New Testament Studies in the Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge, at the New Testament Research Seminar, Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University, 31 October 2011.

The list of forthcoming papers in the NT Research Seminars at Durham University can be found here. RBECS is also on facebook, here.

Dr Gathercole insightfully tackled a very puzzling Christian writing of the second century, namely the Gospel of Thomas (to be subsequently referred to as Thomas), focusing on its theology. His presentation is drawn from a larger project on the composition of Thomas, which he prepares for publication in the SNTS Monograph Series.

In the opening of his presentation, Dr Gathercole briefly introduced some general information on this writing. In antiquity, especially in the Church Fathers, there are a lot of allusions to Thomas (beginning with Ps.-Hippolytus, Cyril of Jerusalem and Origen), and wrongly attributed to Manichees. Read the rest of this entry »

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Biblical and Early Christian Studies

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